Panthers coach Bob Boughner discusses his new second line and how Florida keeps momentum after Christmas break.

Denis Malgin has heard it all his life — he’s too small to play hockey. Through his days playing with professionals as just a teenager in Switzerland to being a 20 year old in the NHL, the knock on the 5-foot-9, 177-pound Panthers forward has always been his size.

But perhaps he’s never quite fit in as he has recently, when he’s helped build a line of three forwards measuring less than six feet tall. For four of the past six games (and likely Thursday night against Philadelphia), Malgin has skated alongside the 5-foot-10 Vincent Trocheck and the 5-foor-11 Evgenii Dadonov.

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“We’re not the biggest,” Malgin said, “but it doesn’t matter.”

The trio has meshed quickly in the past handful of games, forming a line that matches speedy wingers that can keep up with Trocheck, a problem that Florida and coach Bob Boughner faced through the first part of the season.

Malgin had a goal in the Panthers’ win over Arizona. Trocheck scored one against Minnesota.

The second line’s brief emergence has taken some pressure off top-line forwards Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov to carry the offense like they did early in the season. But then Dadonov hurt his shoulder, elevating Nick Bjugstad up and leading to the recall of Malgin from AHL affiliate Springfield.

Malgin has been on fire since returning the NHL, racking up five goals on just 17 shots in 13 games.

“Before we put that line together, I thought all our offense was coming from one line and Troch,” Boughner said. “Now that Dady’s back healthy and Malgin’s playing like he’s playing. We have sort of a good 1-2 combo.”

Marc Crawford knows what Malgin has gone through with his undersized frame. Crawford coached Maglin in Switzerland for the ZSC Lions in Zurich, and is now an associate coach with the Ottawa Senators.

Malgin started playing in Switzerland’s top league when he was 17 years old, facing off against men instead of only other teenagers.

“He wasn’t afraid of playing with men,” Crawford said before last week’s Senators-Panthers game. “He wasn’t afraid of being with older guys. He wanted to show you that he belonged. That really caught my attention right away.”

Malgin had seven goals and 18 assists across two seasons for the ZSC Lions before joining the Panthers last season.

“He’s a smaller guy,” Crawford said. “He knows he’s got to show you every game that he’s going to be able to handle the rigors of the game and he’s going to be able to battle against bigger people. He’s done that, really, for his whole life being an undersized player.”

But the NHL is beginning to look a lot different than it used to. Speed and skill have taken over, with size taking a backseat. The Panthers forward corps isn’t overflowing with size outside of the top line of Huberdeau (6-foot-1), Barkov (6-foot-3) and Bjugstad (6-foot-6).

So the Dadonov-Trocheck-Malgin line doesn’t seem out of place in today’s game.

“Everybody is fast now on our line,” Malgin said. “That’s the key point. We are just fast and play our game and try to keep the puck, play more in the offensive zone.”

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Boughner said he’s sometimes concerned about matchups with an undersized line like his second line, but ultimately is OK especially because of Trocheck’s playing style.

“With Troch, he plays like he’s 6-4,” Boughner said. “He plays that high-energy physical game. That allows you to put some skill guys with him and help him out offensively. All those guys have been doing a real good job of getting inside. That’s my main thing, it’s about getting inside and winning puck battles more than the physical body battles.”

Added Dadonov: “I think we’re playing pretty well. Getting used to each other every game.”

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